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Saturday, September 29, 2012

Although I fill my life with poetry everyday, I think it's something
we especially turn to at times of celebration and times of need. My best friend, Shelby, got married
this Friday, and because I love her as much as I love poetry, I
decided to spend this week posting poems that I hoped would help prepare
her for her wedding and for married life afterward. This final poem, "Found Letter" by Joshua Weiner, is the one of my favorites, and the one I read at their wedding yesterday as a toast. It just about covers everything that I wish for Shelby and Mike, both as individuals and as a couple. So, Shelby and Mike, I hope you've enjoyed this series in your honor, and that you have a wonderful honeymoon in Jamaica tomorrow. Congratulations!

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Although I fill my life with poetry everyday, I think it's something
we especially turn to at times of celebration and times of need. My best friend, Shelby, is getting married
this Friday, and because I love her as much as I love poetry, I've
decided to spend this week posting poems that I hope will help prepare
her for her wedding and for married life afterward. This fourth poem, "A Blessing for Wedding" by Jane Hirshfield, combines exquisite images of the natural world with the hope we have for every couple on their wedding day, and every day after.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Although I fill my life with poetry everyday, I think it's something
we especially turn to at times of celebration and times of need. My best friend, Shelby, is getting married
this Friday, and because I love her as much as I love poetry, I've
decided to spend this week posting poems that I hope will help prepare
her for her wedding and for married life afterward. This third poem, "Marriage," by Lawrence Raab, reminds me that the tiniest moments can change the course of our lives. I know that shortly after Mike proposed, Shelby started to worry about what changes her life would make after they married, and I think the last four stanzas of this poem perfectly capture those anxieties, and also the deep joy and calm that she's feeling about their marriage now.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Although I fill my life with poetry everyday, I think it's something
we especially turn to at times of celebration and times of need. My best friend, Shelby, is getting married
this Friday, and because I love her as much as I love poetry, I've
decided to spend this week posting poems that I hope will help prepare
her for her wedding and for married life afterward. This poem, "Cave Dwellers," by A. Poulin Jr. is the second. I hope it will remind her that love is one of our deepest, primordial instincts, something sacred because it is inherent to our nature and to our survival as humans.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Although I fill my life with poetry everyday, I think it's something
we especially turn to at times of celebration and times of need. My best friend, Shelby, is getting married this Friday, and because I love her as much as I love poetry, I've decided to spend this week posting poems that I hope will help prepare her for her wedding and for married life afterward. This is the first of those, which I hope she'll share with her mother-in-law, Deb, and keep in mind one day when her own children are marrying.

Mother of the Groom (Seamus Heaney)

What she remembers
Is his glistening back
In the bath, his small boots
In the ring of boots at her feet.

Hands in her voided lap,
She hears a daugheter welcomed.
It’s as if he kicked when lifted
And slipped her soapy hold.

Once soap would ease off
The wedding ring
That’s bedded forever now
In her clapping hand.